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The most exciting time for a vegetable gardener has come - the harvest. My first harvest of the year is my Burpeeana Early peas. It took to the 11th week to get my first harvest. The estimated harvest date was Sunday, May 23rd. So it was off about 2 weeks. My time from sowing the seeds to my first harvest was 77 days.
When to Harvest?
How do you know when to harvest the peas? I think some trial and error needs to take place. You want to make sure your peas have developed enough, so look for the bumps underneath. But if they over develop they become more starchy and less sweet. If the pod is nice and round you definitely want to pick them. Try some pods at different stages. Test the peas within to find the optimal picking size for your taste buds. Make sure you harvest frequently, so more peas can grow and more harvesting can take place.
Harvest Right Before Cooking
The quicker you can go from vine to pot the better. The peas begin to convert sugar into starch immediately after leaving the vine. So it's best to pick me right before you are going to eat them. But if that is not possible, you can try storing them in the fridge to slow down the process. Or another option is to just eat them how they are. They are so sweet off the vine, it's like eating candy.
Harvest Results
My first harvest was rather small, as I would expect from the first time. But like I said earlier it's important to keep picking tn encourage more growth. I expect my next harvest in a a day or two to be larger. The amount of peas I got, include the shell which you don't eat, was 1.4 ounces.
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